Guardian Angel
by justlook3
Summary: AU set between the prequels and the original trilogy. The woman who was once Padme Amidala travels to a desert planet to catch just one more glimpse of the son she was forced to give away.
1. Chapter 1

AN: To paraphrase Adam Savage, I reject George Lucas' reality and substitute my own. In reality, this story was written in 2003-2004 and thus the events of "Revenge of the Sith" were unknown to me. This story originally appeared in print form in _Remote Control_ (Issue 22, 2004).

* * *

Obi-Wan Kenobi shook the sand off of his robes just outside of the entrance to his humble dwelling. He had been down to Anchorhead gathering supplies and luckily had just returned in the nick of time. A fierce sandstorm was brewing from the East and in a few moments, being outside would be dangerous indeed. He opened the door and picked up the bundle he had placed near his feet, only to nearly drop it again in shock.

"You should not be here," he hissed when he regained his speech, staring at the petite figure in front of him.

"What ever happened to 'good day, my lady'?" the woman asked with a slight smile.

"Politeness goes out the window when it comes to the danger you could be in. What if someone followed you? Or, for that matter, do you have any idea what kind of danger a woman alone out here at night faces? How did you get here?"

"I'm glad to see you too, Obi-Wan."

Kenobi sighed deeply. "You know I am always happy to see you, Padme, but you know the risks you run in coming here. Why are you here?"

"I need to see him. Please Obi-Wan, I see Leia from afar everyday. I just want to see Luke, see how he's grown. It's been six years."

"You know how dangerous that is. We had an agreement, Padme. Besides, Owen doesn't even let **me** see the boy. Do you think he would let you?"

"You're different. Owen blames the Jedi for what happened to Anakin. Owen would let me see Luke."

"Owen thinks you are **dead**, Padme, as does the rest of the galaxy. What if someone recognized you?"

"On Tatooine? Obi-Wan, you know better than that."

"Yes, on Tatooine, or along your journey from Alderaan. How did you get here anyway?"

"I journeyed to Ordi Minor with a group of delegates to a conference. I used my cover identity as a retainer in the Organas' court. From there, I slipped away and rented a small craft and piloted myself here. I landed where the ship is easily concealed by a dune. No one saw me, Obi-Wan, no one who would recognize me as Padme Amidala at any rate."

"Perhaps, but it was still very dangerous, my lady." Obi-Wan threw in the title by way of comfort for Padme. He knew how difficult things were for the woman in front of him.

"You don't have to call me that any more, Obi-Wan. I'm not even Padme any more." She sighed heavily, taking a seat at Kenobi's small table.

The Jedi sat across from her, taking one of her small hands in his. Gently, he said, "I know. I wish things had turned out differently for you."

She smiled ruefully. "I sometimes wish I had listened to myself when I told Anakin things would not work out."

"You loved Anakin. And I truly believe that he loved you. You disobeyed the Jedi

Order, but sometimes I believe the Force has other things in mind for us."

The former Senator looked up at him in surprise. "You have never said that before. I always believed that you were disapproving even though you helped me."

"I did disapprove." Kenobi waved his arm toward his humble dwelling. "Forced solitude gives you plenty of time to think. And I think the Jedi were wrong in so many things. But it is too late. Maybe if . . .." He let his thought drift away; after all, what was the point?

"There is always the future, Master Obi-Wan. Some day perhaps, the Jedi will overcome once more. And they will find a different way."

"You truly amaze an old man, Padme - optimism in the face of all that has befallen you."

"Not optimism, Obi-Wan- faith. Faith in the Jedi, faith in good, faith in you and Master Yoda. Faith in my children. And perhaps even faith in Anakin."

"After all that has happened, you still have faith in Anakin."

"I love him," Padme said simply. "And I know somewhere inside of him there is that little boy I met so many years ago. Or the man who he grew up to be, the man who loves me. I may never live to see that part of him again, but I have to believe it's still there."

Obi-Wan dropped Padme's hand and covered his face with both of his hands. "I am so sorry, Padme. I caused this. I did this to you. Anakin was right to blame me."

Padme ran around the table to kneel by his side. "No! Anakin loved you like a father. You tried your best to train him. But Anakin had to follow his own path. Your only mistake may have been in loving him - like mine was."

"I wish I had done better."

"There was nothing you could have done. You tried. I do not blame you. How could I? Even though I felt your disapproval, you never once voiced it. You gave up everything for my children and me. Some day, Obi-Wan, maybe in this life, maybe in the next, we will have our Anakin back."

"You would have made a fine Jedi, Padme."

Padme only smiled and squeezed his arm.

"It is too dangerous tonight, but in the morning, I will take you to Anchorhead and perhaps we can get a look at young Luke."

"Thank you, Obi-Wan."

* * *

"Aunt Beru, I'm bored." The small boy whined as he waited in line beside his aunt at a market stall.

"Luke, you begged me to let you come into town with me today. Please, don't let me regret it."

"But I don't wanna stand in line." He pulled on her hand. "I want to look at the speeders."

Beru sighed. Luke had an unquenchable interest in all things relating to flight from speeders to swoop bikes. Unfortunately she also knew that this interest was going to lead to more and more problems keeping Luke safe as he grew. But how did you explain that to a six year old?

Finally, she relented. "You may go over to the lot and look at the speeders, but I do not want you to move until I return, alright? And do not talk to any strangers."

"Yes, Aunt Beru." Luke skipped happily off to the speeder lot. Beru shook her head. Owen would not be pleased. She would have to make sure she swore Luke to silence on their return to the household. It would be difficult; Luke had a tendency to talk on and on when he got excited.

* * *

Luke leaned against the fence beside the speeder lot, looking excitedly around. He saw the latest model near the front of the lot. It was so big and shiny and wonderful. He crept closer and closer to it, wanting just to touch it. He stood in front of it, eyes closed, imagining he was taking a wonderful ride in it. Before he knew it, he had climbed into the cockpit, looking at the controls.

* * *

"Wait here, Anja," Obi-Wan said, using Padme's new name, which was derived from the Alderaanian word for "angel." He showed her to a seat in a small sidewalk café. "I'll see if anyone knows if the Larses are in town today."

"Yes, Ben." She smirked at the name Kenobi now used. She ordered a drink and looked around her at the small but bustling village, the main trading place for the region's moisture farmers. Such a long way from the lush meadows and lakes of Naboo.

* * *

Luke reached out to touch one of the controls, a high-pitched noise causing him to cover his ears.

"You there!" He heard a voice yelling over the din and a hand reached into the cockpit to turn off the alarm. Luke looked up into the angry face of the lot's owner.

"Get out of here, you little scamp, before I call the guards!"

Luke wasted no time jumping out of the cockpit and scampering away. He didn't stop running until he was out of sight of the speeder lot. But what to do now? Aunt Beru had told him not to move. But he had to. Maybe if he found her. He looked around and frowned at the unfamiliar street. His aunt and uncle never let him out of their sight when they came to Anchorhead and he wasn't familiar with the layout of the village. He couldn't remember which side of the lot he had come in on and now he couldn't even see that. He hated to walk back in the direction of the speeder lot, but maybe if he ran past the angry man wouldn't see him.

He walked quickly back in the direction of the speeder lot, but he was too busy running past the lot to realize that he had gone in the wrong direction. He was in a shopping street but not the right one.


	2. Chapter 2

Padme sat sipping her drink, wondering where Obi-Wan had gone to. Suddenly a small boy caught her attention. He looked to be a little younger than Leia, dressed in dusty white, short sandy hair mussed. He also looked lost. She watched him as he came closer to her. He had blue eyes. This made her look closer. She decided he wasn't that young, just small for his age. It might not be Luke, after all, but he still looked like he needed her help.

"Excuse me," she said softly. "You look like you've lost your way."

He looked up at her, with blue eyes as familiar to her as dreaming and her breath nearly stopped. "My Aunt Beru told me not to talk to strangers."

_Aunt Beru?_ _My Luke, my precious Luke_. She had to will her heart to start beating again and her lips to form words. "Your Aunt Beru is very wise to tell you that. But I don't think she'd mind if you took a seat with me for a few moments until my friend returns to give you directions."

"You don't live here?" Luke asked, his youthful curiosity getting the best of Beru's careful teachings.

"No, I'm just here visiting a friend. He knows the place; he can help you get back to your home. Do you live in Anchorhead?"

"No, we live on a moisture farm. We were shopping."

"I'm surprised she let you wander off." Padme's voice had a slight edge to it; wasn't Beru supposed to be keeping him safe?

Luke hung his head. "That was my fault. Aunt Beru told me to stay put, but I had to look at the new speeder. I climbed inside and the owner got really mad and yelled at me so I ran away."

"She must be worried sick by now," Padme said.

"Oh." Luke's eyes got wide. He hadn't thought about that.

"Well, we'll just sit here and when my friend gets back, we'll try to find your aunt. By the way, my name is Anja."

"Mine's Luke."

"Pleased to make your acquaintance, Luke," Padme said, trying to keep the emotion out of her voice as she shook the hand of the child she hadn't seen since his infancy.

* * *

Suddenly a man came around the corner. "Pa. . . Anja, I have. . . ."

His voice trailed off as Padme shot him a warning look and nodded toward the boy sitting next to her. "Hello, Ben. Meet my new friend, Luke. He seems to be lost. Perhaps you can direct him to his Aunt Beru?"

Luke looked at him and slid closer to Padme in fright.

"What is it, Luke?" Padme asked in concern.

"He's a crazy man, my uncle says so. I'm not supposed to talk to him."

Ben sighed; Owen's grudge had taken a new form. He could see Padme bristling and shook his head in warning.

"Don't be afraid, Luke," Padme said quietly, "Ben means you no harm. Sometimes when people are a little different, others think they're crazy."

"But Uncle Owen . . ."

"I know your uncle, Luke and your aunt too. They would not mind if I took you back safely to them. They'll understand that you were just in need of help. You do not have to talk to me if you do not want to."

Luke nodded. Somehow Owen's words had sunken in more when it came to Ben than had Beru's warnings about strangers.

* * *

Beru was frantic. Luke could not be found anywhere. She had looked all over the speeder lot, near the shipyards, and even in the mechanics' huts. She then looked in the toy stall, but still no Luke anywhere. She should never have let him out of her sight, even for a moment. Owen would be so upset with her. And she was upset with herself; she loved Luke with all of her heart. Could the Empire have come here and found him? No, she shook her head, it was a silly thought. The Empire had very little use for this colonial backwater.

* * *

Luke clung to Anja's hand as the man Uncle Owen called a "crazy old hermit" led them through the streets of Anchorhead looking for Aunt Beru. He felt safe with Anja; she was so beautiful and kind. She didn't say much, but she seemed to be quite fond of him and almost looked sad. She also looked so familiar to him, but he couldn't quite place it. He puzzled over it as he followed Ben along.

"I know!" he said suddenly, causing Anja and Ben to stop dead.

"Did you remember where your aunt is?" Anja asked.

"No." He shook his head, wondering why she didn't know what he was talking about. "Biggs' mother has this picture in her house of an angel and you look just like that."

Anja's face grew pale, but she stooped down and kissed him. "That's sweet, Luke." But he wondered why it looked like she was crying when she did so.

* * *

Beru wandered aimlessly, asking people if they had seen Luke. A café owner said he'd seen a boy matching Luke's description heading toward the market with a beautiful woman and a man who he thought looked like that "crazy old hermit who lives in the wastelands but what would he be doing with a girl that beautiful?"

She had quickly hurried back toward the market when she saw three people exiting one of the stalls. As they came closer, she recognized Obi-Wan Kenobi, Luke and someone whose face she thought she'd never see again.

"Padme." she whispered. But Padme was dead- how could this be?

"Oh Luke," she cried out loud, and the boy came running to her. "Oh, Luke." She clutched him to her chest and hugged him tightly. "Don't ever scare me like that again."

"I'm sorry, Aunt Beru. Anja and Ben helped me find you. Uncle Owen says he's crazy, but he was really nice."

"Thank you, thank you both," Beru said gratefully but she eyed Padme suspiciously.

"Can I have a word with you, Beru?" asked Ben. "I'm sure Anja would be happy to keep an eye on young Luke for a moment."

Beru nodded and motioned for a quiet alleyway.

"Why is she here?" She whispered. "I thought she was **dead**."

"In a sense, she is."

"Obi-Wan, don't start with that with me. Is she here for Luke?"

"Padme has started a new life with a new name. Padme Amidala **is **dead. She came here to see him, only see him, not to tell him who she is. We were only intending to see him from afar; running into him was the Force's work. She knows he's better off here. Have mercy on her."

Beru nodded. "Fine, but Owen . . . ."

"Perhaps just this once we could not tell Owen?"

Beru nodded. She didn't want to face Owen's anger if he found out. "All right, just this once. But she's to never talk to him again. Luke is very smart."

"Yes, I know."

"Poor Padme." Beru shook her head. "The things that poor woman has gone through. I don't blame her at all. I wouldn't be able to live on if I were her. I only hope that Luke is more like her than his father."

"We all hope that, Beru, we all hope that."

* * *

"Anja!" Obi-Wan's voice called.

"It's time for me to go, Luke. It was nice meeting you," Padme said softly.

"Will I ever see you again?" Luke asked, looking up at her with those eyes, reminding her so much of the young boy she had met on this very planet so long ago. The boy who had called her an angel.

She leaned down and kissed his cheek. "Think of me as your guardian angel, Luke. You may not see me, but I'll always be there. Goodbye, my sweet Luke."

Beru walked over and took Luke's hand. Obi-Wan offered Padme his arm and they walked away. She didn't look back.

The End


End file.
